I can't imagine how I would pay for HIV care in the USA. My provincial health care plan, which is paid for through income tax deducted at source and very modest provincial health-care premiums levied at tax time, covers ALL costs except medication. We call it "universal coverage".

My medication for my various conditions is remibursed at 100% through my employee beneift plan at work. This comes close to C$21,000 a year. I have to ante up the cost of the meds with my credit card, but it's reimbursed within a couple of weeks through direct deposit, which I simply transfer to MasterCard.

I was hospitalized three times last year for a total of six weeks, the second time having had major chest surgery for pneumonia that went very wrong (empyema). I estimate I've had about $500,000 in medical care over the past two or three years, at no cost to me, save for what I pay through my taxes and what I receive through my employee benefits plan (semi-private coverage and full drug benefits). I was under the care of some of the best thoracic surgeons and nurses in the country.

Other employee benefit plans often have 80% coverage with 20% co-pay, which can often be offset by application to the province, depending on which one you live in. Some provinces pay the full cost of medications for all its citizens(not Ontario).

Keep pushing for universal health care in the States with same coverage for every man, woman, and child. It is well worth it. One never has to worry about how he or she will pay for their healthcare. We may have less disposable income as a result of this, but the payoff is peace of mind. And don't believe the horror stories of "long queues". When your condition is serious or life-threatening in Canada, your case is expedited and you are given access to the best medical care possible (you might have to wait three or four for a bed to open up at a larger teaching hospital, but you are provided with quality care in your local hospital while you waitl).

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